Mocking Jesus is the new national sport. Since the days Jesus walked this earth, men have mocked, demeaned, and blasphemed our Lord. In this country, it is now happening on a regular basis in the national media without any restraints or concern for those who have made the choice to put their faith in Jesus. Even 10 years ago people in the media would have never dared to blaspheme the Lord like they do today. The fact is, they know they can do it, get away with it, and there will be no reprisals.

Nothing illustrates this fact as well as the recent rise of Denver Bronco quarterback Tim Tebow. Tebow is a sold-out Christian who unlike most, is not afraid to share his faith in Christ on the national platform the Lord has given him for this season of his life. Rather than applauding Tebow for his faith, he has become the butt of jokes and disdain by those who reject the Lord.

Last Saturday on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” they did a skit with an actor portraying Tebow and another portraying Jesus. I have as good a sense of humor as anyone and love a good laugh. As I watched this skit, I could see the humor they were trying to illicit. I also realized that this program was perfectly comfortable making a mockery out of our Lord to do so. The fact is, they and others do this type of thing to make fun of Christians because they can get away with it.

I DARE “Saturday Night Live” to do a skit with an actor playing Mohammed! We know they would never even consider it, let alone do it, since the Muslim community would rise up and there would be fatwas (death sentences) pronounced on the actors and anyone who had anything to do with the skit. NBC would have to hire an army since there would be threats to blow up their building and kill executives.

You will probably remember the Danish cartoon a few years ago that depicted Mohammed with a bomb in his headdress. People actually died in the riots that followed that incident. Dutch politician Geert Wilders created a short documentary that accurately depicted Islam as a religion of violence, hate, and death and he now has a price on his head. Remember Salman Rushdie who wrote the book “The Satanic Verses” years ago? He still has to live each day in hiding, going out in public with security for fear of being killed by angry Muslims.

Islam has never been about about love or peace or unity. Islam has been propagated these past 1400 years by violence, hate and death. This false relgion is about one thing, converting the world to their false religion and those who get in their way or who refuse to follow their lies will be silenced and killed. The word “Islam” literally means “submission.” Maybe you don’t understand what it means when their “holy book” says “death to all infidels.” An “infidel” by their definition is anyone who has not converted to their false beliefs. This is their book. These are their teachings. THIS IS WHAT ALL MUSLIMS BELIEVE!

For many who reject the Bible as Truth and Jesus Christ as their Savior, blaspheming our Lord is something they do without conscience or any fear of repercussions. Entertainers like Maher, Stewart, Rosie, hosts of national network programs, and many others, have openly mocked and blasphemed Christ their entire careers to the laughs and cheers of those who listen to them. Others have used their God given gifts and talents to publicly blaspheme the Lord through books, motion pictures, music, and art. As the years have rolled by and the nation gets further away from God and Biblical values, the blaspheming of Jesus gets more frequent, more bold, and more disgusting. Men have used their imaginations to creatively blaspheme the Lord in every possible way while Christians sit back in silence.

Let there be no mistake, mocking Jesus is not a new phenomenon. There were people who lived at the same time as our Lord who rejected Him, just like there are people who reject Him today. We know from the Bible that in the fulfillment of Scripture He was mocked and scorned in the last hours of his life. What is new is the bold and fearless public attacks on our Lord throughout the world today.

I have done many Devotionals over these past 11 years on the boldness of satan versus the timidity of Christians. Do you believe me now? The natural question of course is what do we do about it? First, you can’t blame those who put out these disgusting and blasphemous representations of Jesus. Oh, don’t get me wrong, God WILL hold them accountable, but these are people who have clearly rejected God, His Truth, and Jesus, so what do you expect? They have given themselves over as instruments of unrighteousness so they are actually only doing what comes naturally to them. How can you really blame those who hate and reject the Lord from expressing that rejection and hatred? Hear me carefully. They are not the problem, WE ARE THE PROBLEM!

Maybe now you can understand why I hammer relentlessly on how Christians have abandoned the marketplace for the comfort, safety, and oh yes, the profitability of this Christian subculture we have created for ourselves. In reality, we are in rebellion to God since the Bible doesn’t say separate yourselves from the world, it actually COMMANDS us to do the exact opposite! What we are seeing with the open and public mocking of Jesus is one of the results of our abandoning the culture of our day and leaving it to the devil. He operates virtually without any opposition so why are we surprised that he has taken his hatred and scorn for Jesus to the extremes we witness today? Let me warn you my friend, it is only going to get worse!

The answer to this blaspheming of our Lord is to get back into the marketplace and start taking a stand for Christ. Each follower of the Lord can do their part each day where you live, where you go to school or work, where you shop, in the recreational activities you are involved in, and with the people God brings across your path. You take your stand by living a Godly and holy life. You take your stand by not being afraid to speak up for our Lord when you are around people who are speaking against Him. You take your stand by finding ways to serve Him You can’t stop the mockers, but you can make sure their message of hatred for our Lord does not go unchallenged!!!

I love you and care about you so much. Say a prayer for Tim Tebow, not to win football games, but to contiue to take a bold stand for Jesus. For anyone who loves Jesus, it has to break your heart to see how our Lord and Savior is portrayed by those who hate Him. I have no doubt Jesus is looking down and saying “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” I believe the last thing they will see, the picture that will be with them as they suffer for all eternity, will be that of King Jesus, the One they openly mocked and scorned!!!

Pray for these lost souls. Without the Lord in their heart, they have allowed their lives to be used as agents of satan. Don’t forget that there was a man named Saul of Tarsus who persecuted the early church, killed Christians, yet that same Saul was visited by Jesus one day and his life gloriously transformed. He became Paul and went on to live one of the greatest Christian lives ever documented.

I pray that this will be a wake-up call for all Believers today. A wake-up call that we have got to get back into the marketplace where we live each day and boldly, without shame or compromise proclaim our faith in Christ. If this doesn’t motivate you, nothing will. For too long, we have been intimidated into keeping our mouths shut while those who live in rebellion to God speak loud and bold without fear or conscience to promote their ungodly lives and choices. Maybe this will give you some insight into my drive and passion for what we do each day here at Liveprayer. Our number one goal is to bring the lost to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Getting people saved is the ultimate answer.

In addition to proclaiming the Gospel to the lost and bringing the hope of Christ to the hurting, I am here to bring Biblical Truth back into the marketplace. I can’t stop publishers from putting out disgusting lies about our Lord, I can’t stop people from depicting our Lord in the most horrible ways to make fun of Him, but I can go out into that VERY SAME marketplace and reach those VERY SAME people with the fact that their only hope and their only answer is faith in Jesus Christ!

Those who hate our Lord are bold and courageous in taking their message of hate to the masses. I challenge you today that if you love Jesus, you should be even bolder and more courageous in taking the message of His love to those same masses! While the world blasphemes our Lord, we have got to praise Him!!!